When it comes to getting a haircut, most of us turn to celebrity styles and ape them blindly. While doing so is not wrong, you need to realize the importance of choosing a haircut that is meant for you.

While you buy the best hair products and try all the freebies you can get your hands on, it seems almost unfair that you would take your haircut for granted. Believe it or not, but your haircut says a lot about you. It expresses who you are.

Of course, having a great haircut also works as a confidence-booster. But the question we’re left with is – what makes a great haircut?

The answer lies in the shape of your face. You need to get your tresses cut as per the contours of your face. Different women have different face shapes and hence, the haircut that works for your favorite actress may not work for you.

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Still clueless? Here’s a little bit on face shapes. They can be broadly categorized as –

Oval

The oval shape is considered as the best face shape. You know your face is oval when its length is one and a half times its width, and the width of your forehead is equal to that of your jaw.

Round

You have a round face shape if the length and width of your face are the same/almost the same. Your face tends to take on a circular appearance, with your cheekbones and jaw line receiving little prominence.

Square

If you have a square face shape, you will have a broad forehead and a strong, angular jawline.

Long

Long faces are characterized by the length as it tends to be higher than the width, with a long and straight cheek line.

Heart-shaped

Women with a heart-shaped face tend to have a wide forehead with cheekbones of almost the same width, but their face tends to get narrower around the jawline.

Wondering what your face shape is? We’ll tell you how to figure this one out.

Stand in front of the mirror.
Pull and tie your hair back into a ponytail.
Look closely at the contours of you face.
Using a lipstick (which you’re never going to use again) draw an outline of your face on the mirror.
Move away and look at the drawing.
Use a ruler/measuring tape to measure the length of your face from the forehead to the chin, as well as the width of your forehead, your cheek line, and your jawline.
The shape of your face can now be determined based on the descriptions mentioned above.

Your haircut needs to be suited to your face shape, failing which even well-cut hair will look terrible. Haircuts should work as the perfect frame around a woman’s face to balance and give definition to the overall shape. The ideal haircut will accentuate the attractive attributes of your face, and tone-down its weak points.

Mentioned ahead are haircut suggestions as per your face shape.Oval

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This is supposed to be the ideal shape as almost all haircuts suit oval faces. If you have an oval face, you should consider yourself lucky as it frees you up to experiment with various haircuts without worrying about them not suiting you.

Be careful about one aspect though – avoid bangs that make your face seem small. If you must have bangs, make sure they’re short and sparse as that will add length to your facial structure.

Round

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If you have a round face, you’re better off keeping the length of your hair below the chin and longer. Such haircuts work very well for this face shape. Cutting your hair in layers, with the shortest layer starting at your chin is a good idea, as that lends a slimming effect to the face.

Gentle side-swept bangs that begin at the cheek bone will be a sure shot hit on a round face.

Avoid short layers as they will only make your face appear rounder.

Square

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Because people with square faces have a prominent jawline, they can use their hair to give it the required softness by going for a haircut wherein wisps of hair fall over the face.

Having side-swept bangs will work in your favor and minimize the square-ish effect of your jawline.

Short haircuts with rounded ends hugging your face should also do you good. Medium-length haircuts with the ends falling at the jawline will also help in hiding it.

When it comes to long haircuts, you will do well in opting for face-framing cuts in (preferably) a wavy texture.

Long

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Since your face is long, you need to work towards creating a shortening effect. Go for bangs, blunt or side-swept, as they will cover your large forehead.

Chin and shoulder-length bobs which turn under should help you add width to your face to counterbalance the length. If you have straight hair, try to keep them short or medium.

Consider yourself blessed if you have curls as their volume with add width to your face.

You can also consider adding layers to your hair as they will go a long way in adding softness to the long structure of your face.

Avoid haircuts that add height to the crown of your head, and hairstyles with a middle-parting.

Heart-shaped

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For women with heart-shaped faces, chin and shoulder-length haircuts are the best bet. Apart from that, haircuts that add height to the crown of the mane should look wonderful with medium to long haircuts.

Avoid bangs if you can, but if you must have them, opt for side-swept ones, which end at the arch of your brow, as blunt bangs will make your face seem smaller and wider.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to determine your face shape and the haircuts that go along with it, I’m sure you’ll have no trouble in that department. Keep the above haircut tips in mind to ensure that your hair is always mane-tained well!